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Cans, foil, and other items such as trays are made out of aluminium. In North America one of the major product being recycled is aluminium. Though Americans recycle about 65-70% of the aluminium used in their household, thousands of tons of this is discarded each year. When thinking of recycling aluminium, the image that comes to mind is of cans. But the fact is that any household item made of aluminium, like lawn furniture can be recycled. The local recycling depot can clarify any doubt whether an aluminium item is recyclable or not. Aluminum recycling is actually an interesting process. First the items are collected from the different recycling centers and transported to a scrap metal plant. There is a requirement to sort out this aluminium stuff. Once sorted out they are compressed in to blocks. From here these blocks are sent to various aluminium companies. The existing labels and coatings are taken care of in the aluminium company. The aluminium product that we have has approximately 50% of recycled products. At the aluminium company these blocks are cut into shreds and thereafter crushed. It is here that the labels and coatings etc are removed. The crushed shreds are now melted with new aluminium. The molten aluminium can now be converted to any shape as required. At time the process differs a little depending on the desired end product. You will agree that aluminium recycling is not very difficult. Aluminium is readily available on earth and there is no possibility of exhausting this resource in the near future. Hence, it is important to know as to why should we recycle aluminium. New aluminium requires much more energy to produce than recycling aluminium. The other key factor is the waste, which will be created in case not recycled. North Americans produce an enormous amount of waste each year. And where does it all go? Landfills are filling up and we are running out of places to put our waste. Not only that, but waste is very harmful to indigenous flora and fauna that live in the areas that we have decided to use for our landfills. To get more people to recycle aluminum, companies might consider deposits. When we buy a can, we usually are paying a deposit built into its price. If we want that deposit back, we must return the can. It then enters the cycle of going to a recycling center and then on to be processed. Recycling is good for everybody as it lessens waste accumulation, saves energy, and creates jobs. A lot of people are more environmentally conscious than ever before, but there are still a number of them who don't think about it or decide it's too much trouble. They are still just tossing used aluminum cans and other recyclables. You can be the first in your area to form an environmental group that wants to start a recycling program. You will most likely find that both individuals and businesses will want to join you.
Harry Browar is the owner of First Alluminum, a fantastic resource for information about alluminum, For more articles on alluminum why not visit: www.firstaluminum.com/articles This and other unique content aluminum articles are available with free reprint rights.
Article Source: http://www.changingearth.org
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